A white stucco house behind a flowering coral tree

Matthias Bethke / CC BY-SA 4.0

Where to stay in Santa Teresa

The hill above Lapa: cobbled streets, colonial and belle-époque houses, artists' studios in some of them, the yellow tram climbing through, and views over the whole bay from almost anywhere. It is the most distinctive place to stay in Rio and the least convenient — nothing is walkable from it except downhill, and the way back is a tram, a taxi or a climb.

Price level · Upscale

Rio de Janeiro

Area scorecard

Scored 0–10 by Where Stay Guide. No overall total: every traveller weights these differently.

Sightseeing: 8.0
Walkability: 5.5
Transport: 4.0
Food: 7.0
Nightlife: 6.0
Quietness: 8.0
Families: 5.0
Value: 7.0
Airport / station: 6.0
First trip: 5.5

Best for

A second visit
Couples
Travellers who would rather have a view and a house than a beach and a lobby

Choose elsewhere if

You want to swim
You are here for three days
You will be out late in more than one place

Our picks in Santa Teresa

Best for the hill

Santa Teresa Hotel RJ — MGallery

Our pick for Santa Teresa because it occupies a converted coffee-estate building on Rua Almirante Alexandrino, the street the tram climbs, with the bay below it — which is the entire reason to accept this area's inconvenience.